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Jonathan Groff
| birthplace = Lancaster, Pennsylvania, U.S. | birthname = | othername = | website = }} Jonathan Groff is a Tony Award-nominated American stage performer and TV actor. He was born on March 26, 1985, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Career Groff is best known for originating the role of Melchior Gabor in the Broadway production of Spring Awakening. He played the role from the musical's Broadway debut on December 10, 2006 through May 18, 2008. He also played the same role in the original Off Broadway production earlier during the summer of 2006.Lortel Archives--The Internet Off-Broadway Database Other Broadway credits include the 2005 musical, In My Life. In April 2007, he was nominated for a Drama Desk Award for his role in Spring Awakening. In May 2007, he was nominated for the Tony Award as Best Leading Actor in a Musical for his performance, with the award eventually going to David Hyde Pierce for his performance in Curtains.The American Theatre Wing's Tony Awards - Official Website He played the recurring role of Henry Mackler on the ABC soap opera One Life to Live. His storyline about a school shooting on the long running soap opera was nixed due to the Virginia Tech shooting in April 2007, and he is no longer on the show.One Life To Live' Pulls Hostage Plot After Virginia Tech Killings Henry was killed off the soap on May 8, 2007 after having a drug-induced heart attack while driving a car and subsequently crashing. Jonathan also was in the National Tour of The Sound of Music as Rolf, and appeared in Fame at the North Shore Music Theater in Beverly MA. Before performing on the Broadway stage, Jonathan was a performer at The Ephrata Playhouse in Ephrata, PA. Here he portrayed such characters as Edgar in Bat Boy: The Musical and Ugly in Honk! . After the success of Spring Awakening, Jonathan made a visit to The Ephrata Playhouse to reunite with some of his old cast members during a special event entitled "An Evening With Jonathan Groff". Jonathan also performed in numerous productions at The Fulton Opera House in Lancaster, PA where he accumulated a substantial amount of acting experience. Some earlier jobs of his included being a waiter at The Chelsea Grill of Hell's Kitchen,Jonathan Groff Radical interview a ride operator at Dutch Wonderland, and a counselor at a theater camp in York, Pennsylvania where he taught acting to 11 and 12 year olds.Jonathan Groff Q&A Jonathan Groff left Spring Awakening. His last show was May 18, 2008. Part of his decision to leave is due to his starring role as Claude in the Shakespeare in the Park production of "Hair," running July 22 through August 31, though he left the production on August 17, August 16 being his final performance. Jonathan decided not to join the Broadway revival of Hair, starring much of the Public Theater cast from its run at the Delacorte in Central Park, which began previews at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre on March 6 2009 and officially opened on March 31, 2009.Hair on Broadway at Playbill.com Jonathan is tapped to play Woodstock organizer Michael Lang in acclaimed director Ang Lee's new movie, Taking Woodstock. Filming began in late August 2008, and the movie is set for release on August 15, 2009 release. Jonathan was recently in the Off-Broadway production of "Prayer for My Enemy" a new play by Craig Lucas ("Prelude to a Kiss", "Light in the Piazza") about the consequences the Iraq war has had on an American family. The show co-stars Tony winners Victoria Clark and Michelle Pawk it played in the fall of 2008 at the acclaimed Off-Broadway theater Playwrights Horizons.www.playwrightshorizons.org Jonathan will be performing in "The Bacchae" as Dionysus this summer as a part of the Public Theater's Shakespeare in the Park. Awards and nominations Nominations Drama League Awards: Distinguished Performance 2007 Drama Desk Awards:: Outstanding Actor in a Musical 2007 Tony Awards: Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical 2007 Awards Theatre World Award, 2007 ; also Obie Award, 2009 (for both "Prayer for the Enemy" and "Singing Fosrest") Category:Actors and Actresses